hiring subcontractors

Choosing Subcontractors and Setting Up For Success

The purpose of this website is to guide you in the right direction for building your own home. Building your own home can be very beneficial both emotionally and financially. When contracting out your own home and functioning as the construction manager you can often save up to 25% as opposed to hiring a general contractor or residential contractor. An often viewed myth by individuals interested in building there own home is that they do not have enough time. They are working a 9 to 5 job or whatever it may be and they cannot have time at the jobsite to manage it. I refer to this as a myth because that is exactly what it is. Everyone has enough time to build there own home. Building your own home requires some of your weekend time during the 4 to 5 months which it will take you to manage the process – and then some time after work on your way home. If you are convinced you do not have enough time, then you need to reevaluate your priorities. Once again building your own home can save you upwards of 25%. This can save you thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Once again, the purpose of this information is to provide you with a roadmap to help you succeed. It will discuss industry best practices, benefits to different construction methods, and the financial benefits of each option. This site will also discuss the sequence of the work, some of the material requirements to complete the job, how to manage the work as well as how to manage your subcontractors, and then it will also offer checklists and other reference material to inspect the quality of the construction competed.

Finding Qualified Subcontractors & Labor

This section will be very important in determining your success. One of the most important steps in building your own home is finding and hiring the right trades and subcontractors. Before beginning construction on your new home you need to have done a large portion of your legwork in finding, interviewing, checking previous work quality, and hiring the subcontractors you indent to employ. While there are unlimited ways of finding qualified labor – some common methods include speaking with subcontractors on other jobsites and in other communities, looking in yellow pages, placing notices on bulletin boards of lumber companies, speaking with material vendors and asking for names, or even advertising in the newspaper. The best method from my experience is finding labor in other subdivisions being developed and speaking with the actual laborers on the jobsite. This also provides you with an opportunity to check the quality of the subcontractors work.

Hiring Qualified Subcontractors & Labor

The next crucial step in being your own contractor is hiring the best labor at the best possible price. To be successful at this you must never discuss a price on the phone or outside the project. And the most important step – ALWAYS tell the subcontractor what you are willing to pay. NEVER ask what they are willing to take. You are asking to be overcharged! Plan on personally meeting with the subcontractor to discuss work and prices as well as to interview them prior to going to work. This interview is very important because at the same time you need to be establishing performance standards and expectations which they will be expected to adhear to. This will include the quality of the work to be performed, the time frame you expect the work to be completed in, the responsibility they will take in managing the material and being responsible for the material once at the jobsite, and the cleanliness of the jobsite. Also, for personal protection you should consider drafting up a contractor for the vendor to sign stating payment terms, expectations, etc.

When hiring a subcontractor to perform work on your home, you need to have a professional process developed to help establish authority. When interviewing and hiring subcontractors you should consider having a checklist created that identifies the general conditions by which you wish for them to comply. This checklist should include performance standards, payment structure and standards, payment regarding work that would be considered above contract, procedure for identifying and repairing problems, material use and overages, and warranty work related to the subcontractors job.

Building Permit

Application for Permit

Permitting is one of the first and most important steps in building your own home. At this point you have decided on where you want to build your new dream home, you have located an architect and decided on the plan for your dream home, and you are ready to move foward and build a home on your own. Permitting is important because without the appropriate approvals from the city and municipalities, you could find yourself in violation with thousands of dollars already invested. Typically permitting requires that you submit three (3) sets of plans with diagrams, computations, specifications, and other data as may be required by the Building Official. This should be provided by your chosen architect, and if you have not yet chosen an architect you should verify that this is part of his services.

Example of Permit Package

1. Three (3) Site Plans (no larger than 8 1/2″ x 14″)

- Complete Address

- North Arrow

- Footprint of Building

-Setbacks to all Property Lines

- All Easements

- Location of Fence

2. Two (2) Sets of Construction Plans

- Framing Plans

- Floor Plan

- Elevation Drawings

- Electrical and Plumbing Plans (Not Always Req.)

3. – One (1) CD in PDF or TIF file format – with Plans (provided by architect)

4. Sub-Contractor Validation Sheet – Name of Mechanical Contractors using and there license #

5. Three (3) Engineered Foundation Plans with letter (no larger than 8 1/2″ x 14″)

6. Square Footage Breakdown – Entered on application permit provided by city

7. Homeowner’s association approval and Historical approval (if applicable)

Codes

While each city and municipality will adhere to different building code – most cities are 3 to 5 years back on the current building code. For example, many cities are using the 2003 International Building Code, 2003 International Plumbing Code, 2003 International Mechanical Code, etc while other cities may use more recent versions. Many cities are also under zoning regulations and any other applicable ordinances.

Inspections

The construction manager or contractor responsible for the home will typically be required to call in inspection requests for work done on private property. Typically you will be required to call in the inspection the day before you intend to inspect the property. However, this varies for city to city and you should check with the building officials prior to starting work to ensure you can schedule accordingly. This information is typically available on the city website under the permitting division.

Required Inspections (Will Vary by Location – This is only an example)

Pre-Construction – Trash Bins, Erosion Contro

Temporary Pole, Ground Plumbing – Form Survey required on-site

Foundation

Seconds – (i.e. – Building Frame/Electric and HVAC/Plumbing Top Out)

Flatwork (Walks/Driveways/Patios)

Temporary Power

Finals (Required for Occupancy)

To ensure quality construction – especially for first time homebuilders – it is recommended that you bring in third party inspectors at the frame and final stages.

Construction Cleaning

• House thoroughly swept out; including top edge of baseboard.
• Mud on doors and casings cleaned off.
• Windows cleaned inside and outside.
• A/C return vacuumed out.
• Cabinets cleaned.
• Countertops and sinks spotless.
• No dust in drawers. cabinet shelves or under sink.
• Clean under range top.
• Tub and ceramic tile cleaned.
• Vanity floors and drawers cleaned.
• Commodes cleaned.
• Vanity tops cleaned.
• Windows and window tracks cleaned.
• Screens installed.
• All trash removed from job site.
• Top of water heater cleaned.
• Damper on fireplace cleaned.